France’s main air traffic controllers union announced on Wednesday 21 September 2022 after revoking the three-day strike notice at the end of September after finding an agreement with his supervisory ministry on salaries and hiring.
“Departure wall”
“End conciliation to the ministry: finally the agreement, the SNCTA revokes the notice”, wrote in a short message on its website the National Union of Air Traffic Controllers, the majority among air traffic controllers.
This end of the movement was confirmed by the services of the Minister Delegate for Transport Clément Beaune, who “Is pleased that an agreement has been reached with the SNCTA […] at the end of the conciliation procedure, according to a statement sent to the AFP.
The SNCTA, mobilized for an increase in wages in a context of high inflation, as well as for an acceleration of hiring in order to anticipate a wave of retirements, had called a strike from 28 to 30 September, after a first day of action that caused severe inconvenience last Friday.
These professionals have been particularly alarmed by the expected withdrawal of a third of air navigation control engineers (ICNAs) between 2029 and 2035.
OR, “At least five years of employment separated from qualification” and training skills are “structurally limited”. It was therefore necessary, according to them, to anticipate it “starting wall” from next year and training budget in this direction.
“The changes to the compensation grids will be implemented in connection with a social protocol to be negotiated for the period 2023-2027, which will include commitments to strengthen the quality of the air navigation control service and improve productivity”the ministry said Wednesday.
Furthermore, “clear perspectives were also given on the recruitment of new promotions of controllers in ENAC”, the National School of Civil Aviation, added the services of Clément Beaune.
2,400 flights canceled last Friday
It is about doing “in the face of the resumption of air traffic and the expected retirement of a large number of controllers in the years to come”, confirmed the ministry.
Clément Beaune, according to the same source, “welcomes the spirit of responsibility and the sense of dialogue, which have made it possible to avoid a new social movement, which would have seriously penalized the entire sector in this period of recovery of air transport”.
On Friday, in the face of the strike, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) had asked the airlines operating flights departing or arriving on French territory to cancel in advance 50% of their program, or one thousand aircraft movements.
In total, the movement led to the removal of “More than 2,400 flights” in Europe of the 31,000 expected, air traffic monitoring body Eurocontrol said Monday.
From the same source, other aircraft movements have suffered considerable delays, of the order of 45 minutes for each journey over the French territory.
The main airline association, Iata, estimates “Welcome that the French air traffic controllers have canceled their upcoming strikes”, in a message posted on his Twitter account Wednesday.
In your opinion, “The futile strike on Friday caused delays, cancellations, increased costs and CO2 emissions.”
The organization also asked “The cycle of hostage-taking by airlines ends” and urged the European Union to implement the “Single European sky”.
This reform, launched almost twenty years ago but which is struggling to succeed, aims to move from a traffic organization system dependent on national borders to a coherent zone where aircraft trajectories would approach in a straight line, reducing gas emissions. greenhouse, saving time and money.
ICNAs, which number around 4,000 in France, are among the best-paid public employees, with an average monthly net salary of around € 5,000, including bonuses, which can reach € 9,000 at the end of their career, according to a Senate report. .
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